50 People Died Yesterday Because They Lacked Health Insurance

What if you picked up the morning paper tomorrow and saw the following headline: "50 People Died Yesterday Because They Lacked Health Insurance?" What if you saw the same headline the next day, and the day after that?

This is the average number of people who die every day because they lack health insurance, according to a conservative estimate from the Institute of Medicine. The current number likely is much higher.

Public Citizen needs you to take action immediately and send a message to Congress. We want to gather 50,000 emails to Congress by this Friday.

Single-payer
Take action and help us reach our goal of 50,000 emails to Congress by this Friday!

Too many people have been victimized by our failed health care system. Take Hawaii residents Patrick and his fiancée, Katie, who gave birth to twin girls in April 2008. Because the girls were born prematurely, the bills for their care totaled more than $100,000, and neither of the parents' insurance companies is willing to pay. Their struggles continue to this day.

Or consider Athena, a type 1 diabetic from Washington state. Because diabetes is considered a "pre-existing condition," health insurance is too costly for her. She has been uninsured for three years and so is unable to see a doctor. To afford health insurance, she says, she would have to stop paying her mortgage.

William, stories like these, told to us by our activists, are common. But they could be prevented with a single-payer system of national health insurance. Single-payer does not leave people bankrupt or force them to choose between basic necessities or health.

Over the past several months, we've asked you to join our campaign to create a publicly financed, privately delivered health care system that guarantees all Americans access to high-quality care.

Your actions have made a difference. We now have 83 cosponsors of HR 676, and single-payer advocates have testified in recent congressional hearings on health reform.

But that was just the first step in this long battle.

The next step is to show how the single-payer solution is the only truly cost-effective solution to the nation's health care crisis.
Tell Congress loud and clear that lawmakers must do more than just invite advocates to meetings :

They must order the Congressional Budget Office to compare the cost of a single-payer system with the cost of other health reform proposals. We know this will show that the single-payer solution is the way to go.

Having this piece of information is crucial to ensuring an honest, balanced and transparent debate on health care reform.

We must act quickly. Already, Congress is besieged by private insurance and pharmaceutical company lobbyists who are hard at work trying to make more money at the expense of the American public.
Please, help us reach our goal of 50,000 emails to Congress today.


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Thank you for all you do,
James Floyd, MD
Public Citizen
feedback@citizen.org

P.S. - Take action, then forward this email to at least five of your friends and colleagues!